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Owing to a unique mixture of processor, battery and display technologies, NEC Computers Inc.s Versa DayLite can keep users computing hours after other notebooks would run out of juice. Whats more, the DayLites reflective display allows it to go where few mobile systems have gone before—into direct sunlight.
However, the DayLites power-thrifty, sun-loving display can be a significant liability as well—indoors, the display is sometimes very difficult to see, even when the units backlight is engaged.
In eWeek Labs tests of a $2,499 Versa DayLite powered by a Transmeta Corp. 600MHz Crusoe processor and configured with 128MB of RAM, we found the unit to be a solid and long-running performer, albeit one that requires good lighting to be useful.
The DayLite, which began shipping at the end of June, makes excellent sense for outdoor computing chores, particularly those for which frequent battery charges are impractical. We recommend that users in more traditional settings take a look at the screen to see if the DayLite will work for them.
The notebook ships with 128MB of RAM but supports up to 192MB of RAM. We recommend that sites opt for 192MB, particularly because 16MB of RAM is required for the Intel Corp. code-morphing that the DayLites Crusoe chip carries out, which reduces available RAM.
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The DayLite is powered by a removable, three-cell lithium-ion battery and an internal, nine-cell lithium-polymer battery. In tests using Ziff Davis Media Inc.s BatteryMark 4.0 benchmark, the duo yielded more than 7.5 hours of life between charges with the backlight switched off. With the backlight engaged, the DayLite lasted more than 4 hours—an impressive figure when compared with the 2.5 hours of life weve come to expect from comparably sized ultraportables.
The DayLite features a 10.4-inch reflective TFT (thin-film-transistor) display with a maximum resolution of 1,024 by 768 pixels. The reflective display is similar to those of Compaq Computer Corp.s iPaq 3600-series and Hewlett-Packard Co.s Jornada 560-series Pocket PC handhelds.
The DayLite is built with an integrated NIC and 56K-bps modem, a 20GB hard drive, one PCMCIA slot, two USB (Universal Serial Bus) ports, an external VGA port, an IrDA port, and standard audio ports. External USB CD-ROM and floppy drives ship with the DayLite (neither drive type is built into the unit). The notebook measures 10.4 by 8.3 by 1.3 inches and weighs 3.3 pounds—size and heft typical of ultralight notebooks.
The DayLites keyboard is large enough for extended use, but the feel and action of the keys are nothing to write home about. We suggest that NEC sit down with one of IBMs ultralights for inspiration.
We tested the DayLite in a 192MB configuration, using Ziff Davis Medias Business Winstone 2001 benchmark, which measures performance on common office productivity applications. The DayLite turned in a score of 11.7—well below the marks of other lightweight notebooks. However, Transmeta officials contend that benchmarks such as Winstone do not fairly measure the performance of its Crusoe chips.
Without entering that argument, we can say that we could multitask with media files, productivity applications and file search operations without experiencing poor performance.
Versa DayLite
Versa DayLite
|
USABILITY |
C |
|
CAPABILITY |
B |
|
PERFORMANCE |
B |
|
INTEROPERABILITY |
B |
|
MANAGEABILITY |
B |
NECs Versa DayLite notebook computer delivers more than 7 hours of battery life between charges, thanks to its Transmeta processor and its power-miserly reflective TFT display. However, the DayLite is usable only with significant external lighting, such as that from a bright desk lamp or the sun.
SHORT-TERM BUSINESS IMPACT // The DayLite notebook will immediately make users who must compute outdoors more efficient.
LONG-TERM BUSINESS IMPACT // The DayLites added light requirements will force users to adjust the way they work.
Long battery life; display readable outdoors.
Display can be difficult to read indoors; mediocre keyboard.
NEC Computers Inc.; Sacramento, Calif.; (800) 733-5858; www.neccomp.com